The President of US private equity giant Blackstone says the company is planning to invest heavily into a much-needed renovation and upgrade of Crown Melbourne following its AU$8.9 billion (US$6.5 billion) acquisition of the property’s parent company, Crown Resorts, last year.

Speaking with The Australian while in town this week, Jon Gray said he was confident Crown could become one of the world’s leading casino operators again in the coming years but that significant improvements were required across its long-time flagship operation in Melbourne.

Describing Crown Melbourne as “truly one of the kind, given its scale”, Gray explained, “Melbourne is a physical turnaround story and our objective would be to invest significant capital there and enhance the asset, which we think will be great for the community and great for tourism there as well.”